Snapshots
by Jenna Black
Summary: A story that looks at different moments in Hermione's life. No ships except for friendship. Chapter one - The Yule Ball, trouble and fun ensues. Each chapter looks at a different event, that works to shape Hermione and examine her psyche.


Happy Times/An Ocean of Memories

Alright, so this was originally a one shot written 8 years ago when I was 14. I went to rewrite it, and have since fallen down the rabbit hole. What started out, now has eight parts to it planned out in my mind. Before, I had written nothing but the final chapter, now, I am going back and adding in the beginning and middle. Each chapter is a snapshot (obviously with the title) into Hermione's life and psyche. It should be an interesting adventure. I stress that there is no romantic pairings in this fic (a first for me). This is an experiment as much as anything else, and another way to branch out in my writing. Please, let me know how I am doing.

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Snapshots in Time

Happiness

By Jenna Black

I smile to myself. Looking into the mirror I realize I am truly happy. Contrary to the person I portray all the time to the outside world, I am not very happy. Smart and intelligent yes, but with the higher intellect comes an ability to see more trouble, more danger spots. There's a reason why I am always the one to see the flaws and dangers in any of Harry and Ron's plans. But things had finally started to work out. Admittedly, Voldemort is still out there, somewhere, doing what he does best. I make it a point to no longer name his actions. That way leads to my dwelling on them, which usually leads to trouble.

Of course I know what I am doing; what we are all doing. Biding our time until the real world comes knocking. Everyday it feels like the world around us is an illusion slowly fading away; the ground under our feet getting more and more tremulous and crumbling away a little at a time. I know soon their will be no illusion left.

But for now my gaze is focused on the dress I am wearing. While technically a wizarding robe, I had charmed it to look more like a muggle dress, similar to something worn to a muggle prom. "Only so much better" I say to myself. Rather than being satin it was a rich silk, and instead of having the sparkle of glitter as it seemed every prom dress was want to do, it dazzled with diamonds. Real. Diamonds. "I love the wizarding world" I whisper as I think back to how short a time it took me to make this dress, and how the necklace and earrings I owned from my mother worked perfectly. "Of course, that was where the diamonds came from" I muse, only replicated many times over. My gaze refocuses on the mirror, and I smooth out my dress one last time.

It is the night of the Yule ball, and Harry, Ron, Ginny and I are all going together. None of us as partners per se. Thankfully, any possible romantic entanglements had been cleared up at the beginning of the year. A potion had been leaked into the pumpkin juice in the kitchen, and everyone had partnered up with the nearest person who they found attractive. Harry and Ginny were together, and soon discovered just how little chemistry they had, and Ron and I were together. Of course, we tried dating; but friends were what we are best at and friendship was what we quickly reverted back to. It had been very lonely for a couple weeks after that, as each person sorted out their new feelings about the others. Thankfully, after only a few weeks, the awkwardness had faded away, we were soon back to a calm at ease around each other.

"Hermione you ready to go?" I heard the boys calling from outside my room. As Head Girl, I had my own room just off the common room, so anyone could get to me if they needed to.

"I'll be right down!" I yell. Looking around my room. _My room_. I had never really appreciated my own room until I had lost it. Now the silence was bliss. _Six years of Lavender and Pavarti will do that to you. _Smiling slightly I open the door and step out to meet my friends.

They are waiting just outside the door. Ginny is wearing a lilac dress that should clash horribly with her hair, but somehow, with the shimmering of the fabric, it looks beautiful. The boys are both in standard black dress up robes.

"My lady" Ron says to me joking, as Harry reaches for Ginny's arm.

"Why thank you kind sir." I joke back. We make our way to the ballroom, talking about nothing and everything all at once.

"Whoa" "Wow" "Amazing" I hear beside me. The teachers have outdone themselves again. The entire room looks as if it's in the middle of an ice castle. Everything is white, shimmering, with snowflakes gently falling from the ceiling. Every surface looks like it's covered in a thin layer of ice, without the chill. The glittering lights of thousands of candles make everything look… _magical. _At least, magical as I would have expected as a child, before learning what magic was really about.

The music for the night is some wizarding pop band, with truly horrendous singing voices but able to lead a beat strong enough to dance to.

I look around to see who else is there, but before I get to see much I am pulled to the middle of the dance floor, to dance as if we were nothing but teenagers without a care in the world.

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It was later on in the night. We hadn't lasted long dancing; our version of dancing falls more on the athletic side than anything else. Sitting around the table, I am half leaning against Harry, and Ginny is half leaning against Ron – some people thought it was rather strange and had said so, but to us, it was just how we happened to have sat. The night hadn't been peaceful, with the racket and the people it couldn't possibly; but it was joyful, and _fun._

"Well look at this," I hear from behind me to my right. Malfoy. "I'd expect you redheads would be together, I always expected inbreeding was what brought you into this world. But Potter? Do you need a new prescription? Can't you see that's still the ugly mudblood?"

Thankfully, at Malfoys first words Ginny had grabbed Ron to keep him from moving; I had done the same with Harry. "That's okay Malfoy" I respond to him "We understand. You're so _impotent_ in so many other ways that the only way you can get any _pleasure_ out of your sad excuse for existence is to try and goad us into a fight."

At the start of what I had said, I had rose from my chair and slowly walked over to him. I was inches from him at this point, practically whispering into his ear. Except for the fact that I spoke loudly enough for everyone in vicinity to hear. Inevitably, the pinkness that had first only been on the tips of his ears had spread until it covered all his face.

I dropped my voice a bit, so only he could hear me "So what do you think Malfoy," I truly whispered into his ear. "Did we _rise_ to the occasion?"

At that, he finally stepped away from me, working hard to breathe steadily. This growing up bit is heady stuff I think to myself. "Get away from me Granger" He snapped at me, stepping back quickly. Unfortunately for him, there was a chair just behind him. Hitting it with the corner of his shoe, he toppled over, landing with his hind right up in the air.

"Bloody tempting" Ron muttered where he was still sitting.

"Very" Ginny added, smiling and bring her eyes to my wand.

"A chance we certainly don't get often" Harry added, winking at me.

"Very well," I say. "Engorgio" I whisper, and slowly, before our eyes the trousers on Malfoys robes strained, until finally, bursting at the seams, Malfoy was saved.

"Finite Incantatem!"

I turn to see that Professor Flitwick had snuck up on us during the exchange. Draco turned furious eyes on us. But the teacher was there, and you could see the calculations in his eyes as to what he could, and couldn't get away with. _Another time_ – his eyes promised. "Now I would suggest all of you take a deep breath, and find a different area to reside in." With that, he walked away, clearly keeping an eye on the group. With one last snarl, Malfoy walked away.

"Hermione that was perfect!" Ginny laughed, as I sat back down in my seat.

"What can I say?" I shrugged "I read something similar in a novel over the holidays, I couldn't get it out of my mind. I've been dying to try it for months, but tonight, with this dress, seemed perfect." I smiled again at the image of Malfoys face. _Sometimes, life is good._ "I feel like dancing again, anyone care to join me.?"

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"Tonight was excellent" Ron muttered. It was well into the early hours of the morning. We had gone back to my room at the end of the ball, and had all achieved some level of undress. I had changed into one of my nightgowns, light cotton, horrible for any other room in the castle but perfect for my room with it's never ending warming charm. Ginny had borrowed a tee-shirt and short set, and was lounging by my fireplace. The boys had both left their outside robes by the door, Ron was down to his tee shirt and boxers, Harry was down to just pants. They were sitting on my bead, and I had perched on my trunk. We all had our own little plates – a short trip to the kitchens had marked the end of the dance for us.

"Which part?" Ginny joked "Hermione and Malfoy, or the way he couldn't get near us without a teacher somehow coming over to speak with him or us?"

"Both, especially by the end of the night and the look on his face." Ron said, before dipping into his plate of sandwiches.

"Yes," Harry muttered, he had laid back in my bed and was having issues keeping his eyes open.

"Oh not again," I say. "I'm never going to get you lot up to your rooms at this rate."

I look over to Ginny and see her head nodding as she fought falling asleep herself. "Very well," I mutter.

I walk over to Harry and take off his glasses, before putting them on the bedside table. For the second time that night, _or rather this morning, _I whisper "Engorgio" Slowly my bed grows in size until it looks as if it could sleep eight comfortably.

"Thanks 'ermione" Ron mutters, half asleep with his plate of food on his stomach. I walk to his side of the bed and put the plate onto my desk for the elves to take in the morning.

"C'mon" I say, and help bring the blankets up over them both. I go over to Ginny, and get to wake up enough to move to the bed as well. "Move over," I mutter to Ron, and deposit her on the far right of the bed.

Stepping back I look at my three closest friends. I could just imagine what other people would think if they saw what I saw now. Instead, all I could see or feel was the warmth of friendship. If I had a camera I would take a picture, instead I pause, and just take a moment to _think_ and _remember._ I take the memory and pocket it away; a reminder of a perfect moment whenever I need it.

Smiling slightly, I crawl up from the foot of the bed, and snuggle under the covers between Ron and Harry. I set my alarm with my wand, and then put it in the special pouch I keep on my headboard. Tomorrow would come, and we would face it together.

"Nox" I whisper, and join my friends in slumber.

End Chapter 1

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